The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-03-19
THE TWO COMMITTEES.

Two committees have investigated the af
fairs of the Indiana Insane Hospital, one APP
pointed by the House and one by the Senate.
The House committee was appointed first and
was engaged in taking testimony consider
able time before the Senate committee was
appointed. The result disclosed a most
outrageous condition of affairs at the Insane
Hospital, far worse than was shown in the
civil-service reform committees report last
fall. Even after that committee had made its
report, and even in the heat of the last polit
ical campaign, INSCRIPTIONS Democratic con-
tractors repeatedly furnished butter so vile
that maggots were found in it when it was
placed upon the table for the patients to eat
This is testified to by no less than six wit
nesses who saw it. This butter was accepted
keeper, whom DR.. Tarleton had vigorously
denounced as utterly incompetent and unfit
for the position. In August and September,
1856, reports of subsistence from the differ
emit wards were made to the officers of the
day, showing bad butter, sour bread or in
ferior coffee almost every day.
Five witnesses testified to the utter worth
lessness and dangerous character of the eight
new boilers which have just been put into the
asylum; that the solid plates leaked when sub
jected to hydrostatic test of 100 pounds;
that the men could not work the iron, ETC., ETC.
These defects were all communicated to the
board directly, both verbally and in writing.
Yet the protest of the boards own engineer
was disregarded, and the boilers were accepted
and paid for at a price far above their value.
This is only a 1.-THE of the facts which were
proved before the House committee. The
charges of cruelty, of cholera hogs, of oleo-
margarine, ETC., were all proved.
Now what is the character of the report of
the Senate committed In the first place there
was no suggestion of appointing this commit
tee until after the House had commenced the
investigation The Democratic Senate kept
matters quiet as long as they possibly could.
And it was not until they saw that the in
EQUITIES Of the Democratic administration were
coming to light that they realized the neces-
sity of breaking the force of the thorough in
vestigation made by the House.
The Senate committee on benevolent insti-
tutions was headed by reputable and honest
r. d T
is hard to understand for what purpose com.
mittee on benevolent institutions is organized
if not to inquire into the condition Of the benev
client institutions of the State. The House very
properly appointed no special committee, but
! left the investigation to the regular standing
committee. But the supporters of the pres
ent infamous administration at the Insane
Hospital saw that something heroic must be
done Ordinary measures were likely to fa
in such an emergency. There was DANCE,
that Senator Rahm might get at the facts an6
report them trutLfully. So special commit
ported by violent harangue from Greer
| Smith, who took the floor to denounce, NO
| the administration Of the asylum, but thu
men who presumed to charge that anything
improper was done there. He demanded th
investigation for the purpose of "vindicatin:
the Democratic party" from false charges, as
Stunning in advance what the facts were
and predicted that the committee would re-
turn complete vindieation of the manage
ment from the charges made by the Civil
service Reform Association. This man, VIII
professed to know beforehand what the repor
of the committee was going to be. and wha
they would find, was the man who appointe,
the committee. He had himself a direct in
terest in the perpetuation of the present in
famies Members of his own family are hold
ing places by virtue Of the spoils system
which is there carried on. A new Office il
the medical department was recently create,
for personal friend of his, who was appointe,
upon his recommendation. He appointed OF
this committee, for the purpose Of making tn
report which he had already predicted, mel